Police say Nashua man stabbed himself after slashing wife

By KIMBERLY HOUGHTONUnion Leader CorrespondentAugust 19. 2013 10:12PMNASHUA — A city man who was arrested last week for allegedly slashing his wife's throat later stabbed himself in the stomach in an effort to kill himself, according to court documents.

The incident occurred Aug. 13 just hours after Shamshidah Sultan told her husband, Mohammad Salimullah, that she wanted a divorce, says court records on file at the 9th Circuit Court, Nashua Division.

Using a Hindi language interpreter, Sultan, of 18 East Pearl St., apt. 4, told police that on the evening of Aug. 12, she had approached her husband and asked for a divorce. At the time, Salimullah, 36, allegedly told his wife, "We will die together. I will not allow you to get a divorce," says a police affidavit written by Detective Peter Urban of the Nashua Police Department.

After going to sleep that night, Sultan was abruptly woken around 3 a.m. with Salimullah allegedly above her and his hand over her mouth. According to court documents, he allegedly had a knife on her neck, which he was pushing down against her throat, causing a laceration.

Sultan attempted to fight him off, and suffered a cut to her left hand while trying to grab the knife away from him, says the affidavit. While running into her sister's room for help, she observed Salimullah with the knife to his stomach.

Occupants of the home eventually called police, and when officers arrived they found Sultan injured in the neck and hand, and Salimullah lying on the bedroom floor bleeding from a knife wound to his stomach.

The woman's neck wound required about 20 stitches to close, according to police, who said she was treated and released from St. Joseph Hospital in Nashua. Her husband was taken to Southern New Hampshire Medical Center and eventually discharged prior to his arrest.

During questioning, Salimullah stated he was involved in an argument with his wife about her desire for a divorce, according to court records.

The couple has been married for about six years.

"He made admissions to putting the knife to her throat with the intention of killing her and then killing himself," says the affidavit. "He advised this was because he did not want a divorce and did not want his wife to be with anyone else."

Salimullah told a translator he had concerns about police "beating" him, according to documents, also alleging that his brother-in-law had caused his marital issues, and that at least once Salimullah had considered killing his brother-in-law's son.

Authorities were able to retrieve the knife at the East Pearl Street residence. The couple's nephew was home at the time of the attack, along with Sultan's sister and brother-in-law. Salimullah is being held on $250,000 cash bail charged with felony first-degree assault and second-degree assault for the incident, according to police. He will be back in court on Aug. 28 for a probable cause hearing. He will be defended by attorney Stephen Rosecan.

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